Roasting machine



NOV. 28, 1939. y F|N|Z|Q 2,181,847

ROASTING MACHINE Filed Feb. 5, 1937 6 Sheets-Sheet l .l-llllllllil 7 mllNV NTOR M MTTORNEY Nov. 28, 1939. M FINIZIO 2,181,847

I ROASTING MACHINE Filed Feb. 5, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 .5 z lllllllINVENT R BY 4 '%I/\%RNEIY NOV. 28. 1939. MY z o 2,181,847

ROASTING MACHINE Filed Feb. 5, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 WORM? Nun 2 8.1939.M, 2,181,847

ROASTING MACHINE Filed Feb. 5, 1937 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTQI R M4 7 J6BY W @ORIQEY NOV. 28, 1939. My F|N|Z|Q 2,181,847

' ROAS'ITING MACHINE Filed Feb. 5, 1937 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 i m m 5/ (9A?Patented Nov. 28, 1939 I 2 181 47 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

2,181,847 ROASTING MACHINE Nello Finizio, Peekskill, N. Y.

Application February 5, 1937, Serial No. 124,186 3 Claims. (01. 126-41)This invention relates in general to a machine another attachment on theattachment support- 'for roasting, baking and cooking food, one objecting head.

of the invention being to provide a machine of Figure 8 is a horizontalsectional view on'the I this character which is susceptible to a wideline 8-8 of Figure 7.

* range of use, for example roasting meats, fowl Figure 9 is a rearelevation of the machine. and baking pies, cakes and. vegetables, andwhich Figure 10 is a view similar to Figure 8 showshall be sanitary andeconomical in the use of ing another formof roasting attachment andfuel. illustrating the gas burner ring.

Another object is to provide a machine of the Figure 11 is a detachedside elevation of the character described which shall be small androasting attachment shown in Figure 10. 110 compact so that it may beconveniently used in Figure 12 is a top plan view thereof with the smallspaces and shall be relatively inexpensive. food supporting spitsremoved.

Another object is to provide such a machine Figure 13 is a sideelevation of the attachment embodying novel and improved features ofconas shown in Figure 12.

" struction including a roasting chamber and an Figure 14 is a bottomplan view of the attachautomatic supp-1y of water thereto for constantlyment. and automatically basting the roasts. Figure 15 is an enlargedvertical sectional View A further object is to provide sucha machinethrough the attachment with portions of the embodying novel and improvedfeatures of conspits broken away.

no struction including .a roasting chamber and Figure 16 is afragmentary plan view of the ,20

means for supplying water thereto whereby the bottom wall of theroasting chamber. grease from the roast may be collected upon the Figure17 is a bottom plan view of one of .the surface of the water andwithdrawn for use. spits. for example in making gravies. Figure 17A is afragmentary top plan view of Other objectsare to provide in such amachine one of the spindles for supporting the spit. novel and improvedinterchangeable attachments Figure 18 is a front elevation of anotherform to permit of roasting various forms and sizes of of food supportingattachment. pieces of meat and fowl, and for baking pies Figure 19 is aside elevation thereof. and cakes and vegetables; to provide a machineFigure 20 is a side elevation of the base porne having a roastingchamber and a power driven tion of the attachment with the foodsupporting ao rotary attachment supporting head therein, and spitsremoved.

a number of attachments which may be in Figure 21 is a front elevationof the spits sepchangeably connected to said head; and to obtain aratedfrom the base portion, and other advantages and results as will bebrought Figure 22 is a view similar to Figure 10 show- .;:.5 out by thefollowing description. ing a modification of the invention. Referring tothe accompanying drawings in Specifically describing the invention, themawhich corresponding and like parts are desigchine includes a heatinsulated casing A includnated throughout the several views by the sameing a frame which is shown as comprising four reference charactersvertical standards or legs l' connected by a 49 Figure 1 is a frontelevational view of a maplurality of transverse struts 2. The legs are40 chine embodying the n e o preferably formed of pipe sections, but thede- Figure 2 IS a Vertical Sectional w On the tails of structure of theframe are relatively imline Of Figure L' h w n one form of'foodmaterial. Surrounding the frame is an outer supporting attachment. wall3 which also extends upwardly above the 5 Figure 3 is a verticalsectional view on the uppermost strut 2, and above said strut 2 whichline 33 of Figure 2. 7 is preferably in the form of a sheet of metal,

- Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical and within the outerwalls 3, is a roasting chamsectional View through the attachmentsupportber B that is preferably supported by the legs I ing head and oneof the food supporting attachand uppermost strut 2. The roasting chamberso ments. is shown as approximately cylindrical with an Figure 5 is adetached perspective view of the opening 4 at one side thereof which isnormally food supporting spit shown in Figure 2. closed by a door 5; Theroasting chamber has Figure 6 is a detached perspective view of the heatinsulated walls which as shown include two water supply unit for theroasting chamber. spaced sheets 6 and l of metal between which Figure '7is a view similar to Figure 3 showing is disposed a suitable heatinsulating material 55 8. The top of the casing is also heat insulatedand spans both the roasting chamber andthe outer wall 3, said top beingpreferably composed of two thicknesses 9 of heat insulating materialhaving metal bound edges I0, and a top metal covering sheet H.

The door 5 of the roasting chamber is also preferably heat insulated asshown, and is hinged at its lower edge at 12. The door is normally heldclosed by a follower l3 which is normally influenced against the flatbottom edge I 4 of the door by a plunger l5 preferably fixedly connectedto the follower and slidably mountedn in guides IE on the inside of theouter wall 3, a spring I'l being provided for normally influencing thefollower against the edge of the door. As the door is opened, thefollower I3' is pressed against the influence of the spring I! and whenthe door is fully opened, the action of gravity on the door overcomesthe influence of the spring ll so that the door will remain open untilagain manually closed.

.The roasting chamber has a bottom wall It of approximately conicalformation, gradually sloping downwardly from the center toward the outeredges, and the walls of the chamber overhang the bottom wall 58 as atl9.

Beneath the overhanging portion 89 is mounted a gas burner ring havinggas outlet nozzle 2i.

circumferentially spaced along the inner periphery of the ring. The ringis disposed approximately horizontally above the bottom N3 of theroasting chamber and is supplied with gas at diametrically oppositepoints through branch pipes 22 which are connected to a common supplypipe 23 having an air mixer 24 which is in turn connected through acontrol valve 25 at the rear of the casing to a gas supply main.

Projecting through the bottom of the roasting chamber at the centerthereof is an attachment supporting head 26 which is carried by avertical shaft 21 journaled in bearings 28 and 29 and driven throughworm and worm wheel gearing 3!] from a source of power such as anelectric motor 3|.

The invention contemplates a wide variety of attachments to beinterchangeably mounted on the head 26 for accomplishing differentroasting, baking or other cooking operations. One form of attachment isshown in Figures 2 and 3 and comprises a spit 32 threaded at one end 33into a base 34 which has a socket 35 in its bottom to fit over theattachment supporting head 26.

The attachment supporting head constitutes the upper end of the shaft2'! and a ball bearing 36 which is seated in a recess 37 in the bottomwall It coaxial with the shaft, the upper extremity of the shaft havinga transverse slot 38 which separably receives a transverse pin 39 in thebase 34 of the spit. In this way, the spit is caused to rotate with theshaft and the weight of the spit andits contents are supported by theball bearing 36. Preferably the ball bearing 36 is removable from theend of the shaft for a purpose hereinafter described.

Above the gas burner ring 20 and concentric with the roasting chamberadjacent the attachment supporting head, is an annular water spray pipe36 Water to which is supplied through a pipe 4! from a water main at therear of the casing. This Water spray pipe is shown schematically inFigure 6 and at one extremity has a petcock 2 for permitting water todrip onto the bottom wall 58 of the roasting chamber. The supply ofwater to the spray pipe is controlled by a main control valve 43 at therear of the casing. a

The bottom wall of the roasting chamber ha an overflow nipple 44 whichcommunicates with a drain pipe 65. This overflow pipe is primarily forthe purpose of permitting the flow of grease from the surface of thewater for collection of the grease foruse in gravies and the like.

In use of the machine so far described, the piece of meat or fowl to beroasted is impaled upon the spit 32. Where a fowl is to be roasted, thespit may have one or more U-shaped keepers 46 slidably adjustable on thespit and held in adjusted position by set screws 41, so that the legs ofthe fowl may be arranged within the keepers to firmly support the fowlon the spit. The gas burner having been lighted in the usual way, themotor Si. is started which causes rotation of the spit and meat or fowlto be roasted.

Where it is desired to automatically baste the roast and provide forcollection of grease which drips therefrom, the petcock 42 of the waterspray pipe willbe opened to permit suificient water to flow onto thebottom of the roasting chamber, preferably before the burner is lighted.Then, the moisture from the water will automatically baste the roast,and any grease which drips from the roast will fioat on the surface ofthe water and eventually flow off through the overflow pipe 64 and drainpipe 45. Preferably the base of the spit will have a conical skirt 34ato drain off the grease away from the ball bearing 37 and shaft 21.

It is also possible tobake vegetables at the same time that the roast isbeing cooked, and for this purpose Imay provide a pan 48 having acoaxial opening 49 to slip over the spit 32 and set upon the'base 34 ofthe spit.

The spit can ,be quickly removed simply by lifting it, from the end ofthe shaft 27 andmay be replaced by another desirable attachment. Asshown in Figure 7, I may provide a spider 50 having a hub 5| to fit overthe attachment supporting head in the same manner as the base 34 of thespit, the hub having radiating arms 52 for removably supporting a plate53 upon which may be set, for example, a pie baking pan. The plate 53may also be usedfor cooking steaks, chops and the like, and otherpossible uses will occur to those skilled in the art. K

Another form of attachment is shown in Figures 10 to 17 inclusive, whichis particularly designed for simultaneously roasting several pieces ofmeat or fowl. This attachment includes an inverted cup-shaped body 55 inthe top of which A sprocket G3 is arranged coaxially with the recessfi2and has a central opening toreceive the shaft 21, preferably a ballbearing fi l being disposed between the sprocket and the top wall of thebody 55. In use of this attachment, the ball bearing 3% is removed, andthe hub of the sprocket is set into the recess 31. Also, the hub of thesocket has pins 65 to fit openings 66 in the bottom of the recess 3'!of-the bottom Wall I8 of the roasting chamber so as to prevent rotationof the sprocket. H

Each spindle 5 6 has a sprocket 61, and a chain tate.

68 passes around these sprockets and the sprockets 63 as shown inFigures 14 and 15, so that upon rotation of the shaft 21, the body 55will be rotated and simultaneously each of the spits 51 will be rotated.

While using this attachment, the jets of liquid from the liquid spraypipe 40 are directed onto the 'body 55, as is also the grease from theroasts on the spits. Preferably the top Wall of the body 55 has anoverflow opening 69 to permit the grease and an excess over apredetermined amount of water, to flow through the opening onto thebottom of the roasting chamber. If desired, the opening 69 may be solocated with respect to the chain 68, that the water will drop onto thechain and cool it.

Another form of attachment is shown in Figures 18 to 20 inclusive, andincludes a base 10 to fit upon the attachment supporting head as doesthe spit base 34, said base 10 supporting a spit H through a rockablejoint 12. This form of the invention is especially useful in thehandling of large roasts, the roast being impaled upon the spit H andalso being supported by a hook l3 separably connected to another hook 14which is swivel connected at 15 to a plate or spider 18 at the top ofthe roasting chamber. The rockable point 72 compensates for rotation ofthe shaft 21 and the changing center of gravity of the roast, and thespit causes the roast to ro- Preferably the spit will have an auxiliaryspit Tl adjustably mounted thereon by a bracket 78 so as to provide amore secure grip on the roast for rotating it. Preferably the spit H isseparable connected to the rockable joint 12 as by a socket and setscrew connection 19 to facilitate handling of the spit and base 10.

Instead of the gas burner I may utilize an electric heater for theroasting chamber as shown in Figure 22. Preferably the electric heaterincludes three arcuate electric heating coils 80 which together form acomplete ring and are located in the same position as the gas burnerring. These arcuate coils 80 are preferably connected in parallelcircuit so that one or more selectively may be brought into the circuitas by a selecting switch 8|.

Figure 22 also shows the connection of the motor 3| in the circuit, themotor being controlled by a switch 82 in the usual manner.

The casing of the machine may be formed in any suitable manner, butpreferably is as shown. The outer wall 3 is shown as composed of a frontsection 85 and two rear sections 86, the front section having a frontpanel 81 and two side panels 88 each of which extends over approximatelyone-half of the side of the casing. Each rear section includes a sidepanel 89 and a rear panel 953. The side panels 83 and 89 have inturnedflanges 9!, which are connected by bolts 92, and the edges of the rearpanels 90 are in spaced relation to provide access to the parts withinthe casing. Preferably a separable cover plate 93 closes the openingbetween the rear panels 90. The front section 85 has an openingregistering with the opening in the roasting chamber and in which thedoor 5 is mounted.

In al1 forms of the invention, a flue 95 will be provided for ventingthe roasting chamber, and an air inlet opening IE8 will be provided,preferably at the rear of the casing and below the roasting chamber, soas to supply air to the chamber, for example through openings H19 in thebottom wall 58 above the water or grease level which is controlled bythe overflow pipe 'M. Preferably a fan l IE will be mounted on the shaftof the motor 3| to cause circulation of the air.

While I have shown and described the invention as embodied in certaindetails of structure, it should be understood that this is primarily forthe purpose of illustrating the principles of the invention, and thatmany modifications and changes may be made in the details of structurewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is: g

1. A machine of the character described 'comprising a casing having aroasting chamber therein, a heater in said chamber, a food support insaid chamber, means for supplying water to the bottom of said chamber tocollect grease on the surface of the water, and an overflow opening todrain off the grease at a predetermined level of the water.

2. A machine of the character described comprising a casing having aroasting chamber therein, a heater in said chambery a head at the bottomof said chamber rotatable about a vertical axis to receive and rotate afood support, a food support including a body mounted on said head torotate therewith, a stationary sprocket coaxial with said head, aplurality of spindles journaled on said body to rotate on vertical axesrelatively to said body, sprockets on said spindles, an endless chainpassing around said stationary sprocket and said spindle sprockets tocause rotation of said spindles simultaneously with rotation of saidbody, means for rotating said'head and said body, and food supportsmounted on said spindles.

3. A machine of the character described comprising a casing having aroasting chamber therein, a heater in said chamber, a food support insaid chamber and disposed centrally thereof, the bottom of said chamberinclining downwardly from said support toward the side walls of thechamber, means for supplying water to the bottom of said chamber tocollect grease on the surface of the water, and an overflow opening inthe bottom of said chamber adjacent the wall of the latter to drain offthe grease at a predetermined level of the water.

NELLO FINIZIO.

